India based ride hailing company and rival of Uber – Ola, is all set to step into the UK market.
The Indian company founded in 2011 already operates in 110 cities and has a customer base of 125 million. Ola plans to start off business in the UK with ventures in South Wales and Greater Manchester.
A choice of private hire vehicle or black taxi would be offered by it unlike Uber.
The company wants to expand to cities throughout the UK by the end of 2018 and is consulting with local authorities for this purpose.
The South Wales operations of Ola will being next month, the company said.
This is the first occasion that Uber, the market leader in the UK market, is facing any serious challenge. Uber was set up in 2009 and operates in 600 cities across the world and has a driver base of three million.
Earlier this year, Ola started operations in Australia and UK is its third market.
Japan’s SoftBank is an investor in both Ola and Uber but the companies are fierce rivals in the Indian market even though earlier this year, Uber had closed down its operations in South East Asia.
Despite being widely popular in the UK, Uber has faced criticism on many fronts.
The services offered by companies like Uber is a platform connecting people looking for a ride and car owners ready to offer a lift against money. the apps are to be used on smartphones. But with its growth, companies like Uber have come under scrutiny related to issues like passenger safety and its treatment of drivers.
There are court cases against involving Uber where which relate to questions of whether there is need for a license for the company to operate and whether it is an employer or is simply an app and the degree of regulations that it can wield on drives and responsibilities for the safety of passenger. While some cities have banned Uber, it has had to fight out to get a license to operate in London. The company has been severely opposed by licensed drivers of black taxis because it is years before such drivers are able to get a license.
In addition to individuals who offer private hire, the first app to link to both of the above would be Ola.
Gett and mytaxi are currently the apps in the UK that connect passengers with black taxis.
The willing ness of Ola to engage with authorities has bene stressed in the launch statement of Ola. It says it "seeks to lead the industry with its approach to passenger safety including Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS)-screened drivers".
Sharing of journey details of a passenger with his/her emergency contacts and round-the-clock voice support would also be offered by Ola.
Ola and Uber have been entangled in a bitter battle in the Indian market with aggressive marketing that is costing the companies money. last year, Ola reported a loss of about $700m despite a big increase in revenues.
(Source:www.bbc.com)
The Indian company founded in 2011 already operates in 110 cities and has a customer base of 125 million. Ola plans to start off business in the UK with ventures in South Wales and Greater Manchester.
A choice of private hire vehicle or black taxi would be offered by it unlike Uber.
The company wants to expand to cities throughout the UK by the end of 2018 and is consulting with local authorities for this purpose.
The South Wales operations of Ola will being next month, the company said.
This is the first occasion that Uber, the market leader in the UK market, is facing any serious challenge. Uber was set up in 2009 and operates in 600 cities across the world and has a driver base of three million.
Earlier this year, Ola started operations in Australia and UK is its third market.
Japan’s SoftBank is an investor in both Ola and Uber but the companies are fierce rivals in the Indian market even though earlier this year, Uber had closed down its operations in South East Asia.
Despite being widely popular in the UK, Uber has faced criticism on many fronts.
The services offered by companies like Uber is a platform connecting people looking for a ride and car owners ready to offer a lift against money. the apps are to be used on smartphones. But with its growth, companies like Uber have come under scrutiny related to issues like passenger safety and its treatment of drivers.
There are court cases against involving Uber where which relate to questions of whether there is need for a license for the company to operate and whether it is an employer or is simply an app and the degree of regulations that it can wield on drives and responsibilities for the safety of passenger. While some cities have banned Uber, it has had to fight out to get a license to operate in London. The company has been severely opposed by licensed drivers of black taxis because it is years before such drivers are able to get a license.
In addition to individuals who offer private hire, the first app to link to both of the above would be Ola.
Gett and mytaxi are currently the apps in the UK that connect passengers with black taxis.
The willing ness of Ola to engage with authorities has bene stressed in the launch statement of Ola. It says it "seeks to lead the industry with its approach to passenger safety including Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS)-screened drivers".
Sharing of journey details of a passenger with his/her emergency contacts and round-the-clock voice support would also be offered by Ola.
Ola and Uber have been entangled in a bitter battle in the Indian market with aggressive marketing that is costing the companies money. last year, Ola reported a loss of about $700m despite a big increase in revenues.
(Source:www.bbc.com)
